The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1887-06-05
THE GOOD OLD DAYS.
The March of Progress During Half
a Century.

Men ninety years old remember when
there were no steamboats,, but all
travel on the water was done by the
slow, uncertain means of sailing yes
sells, when if one started for New York
it was doubtful if he would reach there
in day or a week. Now we know how
many hours and minutes it REQUIRES to
make the trip.
Men now sixty years old remember
when there were no railroads, but all
travel on land was done by stages, by
wagons, by OK teams, on horseback,
and on foot. Now a network of rail-
roads covers the whole country. and
several lines run from the Atlantic to
the Pacific Ocean. Now it requires
only six or seven days to cross the con-
tinent. Formerly that trip required
three months.
Men fifty years old remember when
there were no photographs, but only
paintings and drawings, made at great
prices, of objects now done better in an
instant at trifing cost.
Men of that age also remember when
no steam boat crossed the ocean, and it
was believed that they never could,
butnow hundreds of steamships are
blowing every ocean, reducing the
time OF crossing the Atlantic from
weeks to days.
Men forty-6Ye years old remember
when there was no electric-plating, but
every thing in that line was done in the
old fashioned, slow way.
Men of that age also remember when
ALL
messages had to be sent by the slow
going mails.
Men twenty-five wears old remember
the messages now spoken through them
had to be sent by note or special
| messenger.
All these grand and useful inventions
have been made within the .memory of
| men now living. The younger genera
ton can never appreciate them as those
do who remember the want of them,
and therefore the great convenience
they are to the world.
We often hear of 1.-The good old days
OF Yore." Why deprive our children of
the enjoyment of those cid days? Why
not pass law forbidding steamboats,
from blowing the waters, railroads
from running on land, telegraphs from
sending messages, telephones from be-
ing used ali furnaces, steam heaters, etc.
to be taken out of houses and Other
buildings, all CRATES for burning coal tc
be taken out, all stoves to be melted
for old iron. all water works in the
cities to be left empty, the use of all ga.
and other illuminators, except
dipped tallow candles, to be discon
tinued, and really to go back to the
good old times" say for five years
Then, if at midnight on cold, stormy
night doctor is wanted; he must b
sent for instead of telephoning for him
II one wishes to send q message to .
distance, instead of telegraphing b,
must write letter and send it by
stages to distance place and wal
patiently for days or weeks for tn,
answer.
When one goes home on a freezine
night he can sit by wood fire, roast
ing on one side while freezing the other
and reading by the dim light of q
tallow dip instead of the blaze of g
gashght or the EGore agreeable light OF
kerosene. If he undertakes journey
instead of getting into cars and going
where he wishes, the best thing he can
do is to take stage at four times the
cost and ten tiMes the discomfort of the
cars. Let these and other modern i'm
provements be forbidden and the
good old days" be brought back, how
long would it be before an extra session
of the Legisla ture would be demanded
to knock the good old days" into
splinters, and to restore the much bet
ter modern days which we now enjoy,
and for which we ought to be most
devoutly thankful.-Bridgep0rt STAN
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